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Worship That Opens Up The Heavens

04-18-2012, 05:31 AM

Worship That Opens Up The Heavens

Today we talk about worship that opens up the heavens starting from the book of Judge Chapter 6, it is how God called Gideon made life his life peculiar. I always say that Worship is a response and that Worship is obedience, how many of us respond to God or his promptings. I pray that after reading through this article God will open your eyes and give you a life that responds and obey in Jesus Name.
Background to the story is that Israel was under the oppression and terror of Midianites for over 7 years and Gideon was hiding in a winepress threshing wheat (doing the right thing in the wrong place just shows you the fear that was in Gideon life).His father was a gateway to the worship of Baal in Israel and idolatry was rife at this time.

Gideon had fear, self esteem and was under strain of his life and the life in Israel was still unsettled place regardless of all this, he had an incredible revelation that opened up the heavens over his life and that of Israel. Someone will say Gideon was already chosen by God, so God was bound to do it and that’s why his story is peculiar.

I truly believe that God has given free will to man and God will only work with a man to the level of his personal willingness and Gideon’s willingness was high. Gideon gave all his free will to God and look at the outcome of his life, Total Abandonment.

Worship is a freewill offering of total abandonment, Worship is your response to God and Worship is obedience

• Judges 6:20-21 Gideon’s response to meeting an angel of the Lord under an oak tree was to offer his sacrifice before the angel, several things that blew my mind

Gideon met an ordinary men, he did not even know that he was an angel, what makes an ordinary men, hiding in a winepress, living in a place where idolatry is rife come to a place where he was provoked by just words of a man whom he did not know or even knew that he was an angel and decide to look for an offering, such a revelation.

How long does it take to make cake, to kill a goat and to make broth (soup), I guess it must be an hour or two or several but still the angel of the Lord waited until he brought soup, cakes and flesh of a goat to him. The angel never complained about time it’s because it understood that the language of heaven is total abandonment.

When he came with the offering why didn’t he protest, “you are asking me to put things I spent hours preparing on top of a rock and just waste them on a rock? Gideon never objected it was his obedience to the man and the word he spoke that opened the heavens over his life. “His obedience granted him audience with God”

There is something that Gideon knew that we need to grab ahold of today. It was his obedience and abandonment that caused heaven to step in and God responded and spoke to Gideon.

• God responded to Gideon by reassuring him with words of comfort because Gideon thought he was going to die because he realized that he had an encounter with an angel of God. When God spoke these words of comfort Gideon responded by “building an altar there unto the LORD, and called it Jehovah Shalom” Jehovah Shalom signifies The Lord is my peace or the peace of Jehovah.

The exact place where God spoke to him was the same place where built the altar, Gideon didn’t need to offer that offering, God didn’t require of that offering. He was not obligated to offer it but out of his worship he responded to the open heaven by building an altar. It was his total abandonment and his response to God that opened the heavens over his life.

• “And it came to pass the same night” Judges 6:25 it wasn’t an afar off thing God responded also that same night to Gideon’s offering by asking him to destroy the altar of Baal and Asherah and build an new altar on a rock and sacrifice upon it bulls, this was such a significant sacrifice because it destroyed the satanic hold over the people.

As soon as he these life changing encounters with God the Bible says in Judges 6:34 “But the Spirit of the LORD came upon Gideon” and then afterwards he went to war to defend Israelites against Midian the same people he was running from.

His response to the request of the Lord was prompt, he destroyed the altars of Baal and Asherah the same night God spoke to him. Do not take for granted the things that are required of you by God.

God speaks + Sacrifice or worship = Open Heavens
The equation in Gideon’s life

People are crying today they want to hear God speak to them, God responds to worship, God responds to total abandonment, God responds to obedience, God responds to offerings and God responds according to your responses. You want heaven to open up, start living such a life and talking with God becomes daily food.

What made the life of Gideon was his response, his obedience and his total abandonment in his offering that caused a fearful man, a man with low self esteem and a man whose father was a gateway to the worship of other gods to become one of the greatest judges of Israel. Gideon never lacked an open heaven, God’s voice and miracles in his life even after this encounter and for the rest of his days as a judge.

I pray that whatever made Gideon’s worship open up the heavens for his life, may that revelation and lifestyle becomes a foundation in your worship In Jesus Name.